Mary Allen
Pigeon keepers do everything they can to keep their animals’ digestion in good shape. Carrots are perfect for this, among other things. One advantage: they are available all year round.
A pigeon is only healthy if its intestines are healthy too. Some breeders take this point of view; it is clear that in recent years word has spread more and more that intestinal health makes a decisive contribution to the well-being and health of pigeons. In times when the swollen intestine syndrome is rampant, the so-called young pigeon disease, the topic is more relevant than ever.
The inventiveness of the breeders, but also of the specialist industry, is downright huge; there are hardly any limits to the ideas. The market is full of products with one purpose: to revitalize intestinal flora. New trends are towards increased oat feeding. But breeders are also rediscovering traditional methods. Many of them are also used successfully in humans. So there is no harm in looking outside the box in this case.
A proven intestinal sanitizer is a carrot. Even small children like to cook carrot porridge. In addition to very high water content, the vegetables have a lot of dietary fiber and vitamins. All factors promote intestinal health.
Feeding chickens carrots is easy. They can pick pieces out of fresh carrots with their beak. Pigeons, on the other hand, cannot do that. So if you want to feed them carrots, you can’t avoid cutting them into small pieces. You can also do this with a food processor if you want. After a short adjustment period, the pigeons like to eat such carrot pieces. With some salt or feed lime sprinkled on top, the threat becomes even more attractive for the animals.
Carrot Soup in the Drinking Water
A very simple method is the feeding of so-called carrot pearls, as they are offered in the feed trade. These are processed carrots that have been shaped into peas. This has the decisive advantage that they can be administered to the pigeons without prior processing.
A somewhat more complex alternative is the “Rüeblisuppe”, with which the author has had good experiences. To do this, one kilogram of grated organic carrots and two tablespoons of iodized salt are simmered very slowly in two liters of water for two hours. The resulting “soup” is sieved and mixed with the pigeons’ drinking water. An ideal mixing ratio is two deciliters to one liter of water.
This potion is usually served three days in a row. During this time, the carrot soup can easily be stored in the refrigerator. As a rule, it is sufficient to carry out this cure once or twice a month. The experience that the pigeons immediately accept the drinking water enriched with carrot soup is interesting. Every pigeon fancier can sing a song about how choosy these animals are otherwise.
The positive effect that carrots have on the intestinal flora should not be underestimated, regardless of the form in which the pigeons eat them. They are ideal as a supportive measure to prevent swollen bowel syndrome. The prerequisite, however, is that you give them regularly. But that applies to everything in pigeon breeding, according to the motto: “Constant dripping wears away the stone”.